1. Hartsfield Jackson airport is about 12 miles from downtown. You can take a cab from the airport which should run you about $40. If you want to save some money, take MARTA. The MARTA train station is literally inside the airport. It costs $1 to buy a Breeze card (required) and $2.50 to get from the airport to downtown.

2. The host hotel blocks are completely booked. They literally sell out within hours of becoming available. Some of the overflow hotels still have rooms, and some are offer shuttle service to the host hotels. Atlanta is busy that weekend with other stuff going on in town so prices are usually very expensive.

Or you can try your luck with the DC rooms livejournal which is the only option at this point to get the unavailable hotels. http://dragonconrooms.livejournal.com/ List is already huge with people looking for rooms though!

We stayed at one of the overflow hotels and we bought a MARTA 4-day pass for like $6. I wish DC's subway system was that cheap. Now the only con is that if you want to do a late night event, you'd have to take a Cab back to the hotel since they close at a certain hour.

Hotels are booked, but in previous years the hotels will offer blocks in the spring or summer. Hilton did last year.

You don't need to get a cab. The Atlanta's train, MARTA runs from the airport to downtown. Every year I see tons of people headed to DragonCon on the train. You want to get off at Civic Center station. All of the hotels are in that area. The Marriott is 0.4 miles from the station. If you really don't want to walk, you can go from the train to a bus that drops you off pretty much right on top of the hotels. If you want to save some money this is your cheapest route. A cab can get costly in Atlanta.

Ditto to what others have said about MARTA. I live in Georgia and go to Atlanta several times a year. Most of the time I use MARTA to get around town with no trouble. I've stayed on the edge of the city and took the train for my first Dragon*Con. And now, even though I stay at at a host hotel, I still park my car at a MARTA station and take the train to get off at Peachtree Station (nearest exit point to the con, not Civic Center like someone said above). From the Airport station to Peachtree, you're probably looking at a $5 ticket and 20-25 min ride. A cab would probably cost around $30 min. A third option is shuttles, but they probably cost nearly as much as cabs. Check itsmarta.com. The station exit actually takes you directly into the food court, which to me as unofficially part of the con grounds.

Speaking of con grounds, I don't know if you're aware, but the con is really spread out over several city blocks. It's not limited to a single building like 99% of cons out there. The host hotels ARE the con, as well as connecting streets and walkway tunnels.

This seems to be the worst year to date for hotels. Host hotels booked within hours of going on sale, and even overflow ones within walking distance have been quite full since the fall. Your best bet is to follow that LiveJournal link someone else posted to the lady who tracks hotel deals. If these happen to get freed up from cancellations, definitely snatch it up: Motel 6 (one block north of Hilton), Holiday Inn Downtown (2 blocks west of Hyatt), or formerly Days Inn/Hotel ATL (also 2 blocks west of Hyatt). Of course, if you can somehow get any of the 5 host ones (Hyatt Regancy, Marriott Marquis, Hilton, Sheraton, Westin Peachtree), you should thank the cosplay gods with offerings everyday!

And if you have time to kill, I do have a blog (in my sig below) with a guide to D*C for newbies and first time attendees like yourself. Hopefully, you'll find something in there useful. And feel free to ask more questions on here!

Another word about MARTA when you're booking your flight, make sure you don't get a super early flight or you won't be able to take MARTA to the airport. The train shuts down around 2 and doesn't start running again until 5, so just make sure you have a plan to hang somewhere for those three hours if you plan on using MARTA to get around.

DragonCon can definitely be overwhelming, and I say that as someone who has lived in Atlanta for eight years. As the con nears and you find you have other questions specific to getting around the city, I'd be happy to offer a local's point of view. That goes for anyone, really, who may happen to read this thread.

And now, even though I stay at at a host hotel, I still park my car at a MARTA station and take the train to get off at Peachtree Station (nearest exit point to the con, not Civic Center like someone said above).

Psst: It's Peachtree Center Station. :P

Civic Center will get you to the con, but you'd have to walk about 7 blocks. It's just much easier to get off the train at Peachtree Center. When you do get off the train at Peachtree Center, there are four stairwells. Look for the sign that points to Hilton and Sheraton, and you'll need to go up that stairwell. Up the loooooong escalator to P'tree Center is a food court where mostly everyone at Dragoncon gets their meals! Lots of fast food options, including a few gluten-free and milk-free options.